Dupe Alert! Essie Naughty Nautical and NYC Short Shorts

A little while ago, I promised a comparison of Essie Naughty Nautical (from Essie’s summer collection) and NYC Short Shorts, from NYC’s limited edition Rooftop Party collection. And, I have good news for those seeking a cheaper alternative to the Essie – the NYC polish is extremely similar!

Whether you consider these dupes will depend on your own definition of dupe. The base color is very, very close. The shimmer is slightly different; the Essie has small flakies, while the NYC has regular shimmer. I can see the difference in the swatch sticks when they are side by side (especially in person, and in good lighting), but if I have one polish on my nails, I can’t tell just from looking at it which it is.

Essie Naughty Nautical is available online at Nordstrom (free shipping!), Beauty.com, Amazon, and many more online retailers, as well as in drugstores. You’ll have to search for the NYC collection – thus far, I’ve only seen it at CVS.

*I purchased the product(s) featured in this post. This post contains one or more affiliate links. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.